Living in a crazy world
by Godessofwomen
Summary: Thalia stumbles across Glenn and saves his life, he invites her back to his group. Eventual Daryl/OC relationship. Set season 1.
1. Chapter 1

**Authors note:**

**So this is my second attempt at a Daryl/OC fanfic. I'm hoping this one will work out better, I got this chapter out in half an hour, so I guess so ;) So review please, even if its to tell me I'm doing something wrong! I appreciate you reading this so much, thank you, you awesome people.**

**Disclaimer: I dont own anything except my own character, Thalia.**

Thalia caught sight of the Asian guy as she turned, checking for walkers. He was moving carefully from alley to alley. She followed him, watched as he ducked into stores, grabbing things, in and out in seconds. As he came out of one store though, a walker followed him out, he heard it and ran. She ran after them, took the walker down with her knife, blow straight to the skull. The Asian guy turned around, and looked at her in shock.

'Thanks' he said panting.

'No problem' she told him. He looked at her taking in her slightly strange appearance. She had long black hair, tattoos covered her right shoulder, she wore a vest top and shorts along with army boots. She had more tattoos down her legs, bright and colourful over her tanned skin.

'I'm with another group, I can take you back if you want. You look like you're on your own' he suggested. She looked at him.

'If you're sure. I don't want to be no trouble' Thalia said looking straight at him.

'No it's fine. I'm Glenn by the way' he said. Thalia smiled.

'I'm Thalia.' They walked on chatting quietly about things, Glenn discovered that she was from England, that she'd been backpacking for a couple of years before the world ended. Glenn told her about his job and his family. He led her to an abandoned quarry, or at least it looked abandoned. On closer look there were tents and cars all gathered in a circle. A tall guy with thick black hair came up to them as they drew closer to the camp.

'Glenn, you made it back, who's this?' he asked.

'Yeah, I made it back, thanks to Thalia here. She saved my life, I woulda been in a walkers belly if it weren't for her. So I brought her here, she was on her own' Glenn explained.

'I'm Shane, nice to meet you' he said holding his hand out for Thalia to shake. She shook it, she had a firm handshake. He walked her over to the rest of the camp and introduced her to everyone. She noticed a scruffy guy looking at her and she looked right on back. He smirked, as she stuck her tongue out at him. Glenn motioned for her to sit next to him, so she did. She looked around, taking the group in, there were a couple of kids, some young women, and a few guys. The one that had stared at her had a crossbow, and the guy next to him was cleaning a pretty big knife. They looked related.

Later that evening after dinner, Lori showed her the lake, where they could clean up and wash their clothes.

'Thanks Lori, as you can probably see my hair is disgusting, and definitely could do with a wash. But I'll wait till morning, it's a bit creepy being down here at night' Thalia said. Lori smiled and nodded.

'It definitely is, lets head back to camp, I wonder what Carl's up to' she said. Thalia walked beside her, keeping an eye out for walkers. When she got back to camp, she chose the tree closest to the camp, and began to climb.

'Hey! Thalia, whatcha doing?' Shane called. She finished climbing and found a wide fork to sit on.

'I like to be up high. I cant sleep on the ground' she said. Shane nodded. She undid her belt and strapped herself in. She drifted off slowly and fell into a dreamless sleep.

When she woke, the sun was just coming up, she undid her belt and climbed down from the tree quickly and quietly. She grabbed her backpack, and the bar of soap Lori had given her and made a beeline for the lake. Once there she stripped off, and waded out with the soap in her hands. First she started on her hair because it was gross.

Daryl caught a glimpse of movement out of the corner of his eye and turned. It was that new girl, Thalia. She was washing her hair. He took in her tattoos, her tanned skin, her taut muscles. He shook his head, no point in thinking about women now, he needed some food.

Thalia finished washing up and walked out of the lake, she grabbed her towel, and began drying off quickly, worried that someone would come to find her. She pulled on her underwear, and shorts and a vest top that said 'Blessed be' on it. It was one of her favourites. She dried her feet and pulled on her socks and shoes, all the while keeping an eye out for walkers. She walked slowly back to camp, to find everyone up and cooking breakfast. It looked like meat too. She swallowed. She hadn't had meat in ages. She sat down next to Glenn. She pulled her backpack over to her and pulled out her little CD player. Glenn looked at her in amazement.

'You got any CD's for that?' He asked. Thalia nodded. She put in her one of her favourites, Guns 'n' Roses, Appetite for Destruction. Glenn nodded appreciatively. She passed him one of her headphones, and moved closer so they could share. She pressed play. She closed her eyes and listened to the music. When she opened them again, the staring guy from yesterday was watching her again. She smiled at him. He shook his head at her, but she saw him smile as he moved away.

Later that day Thalia was lying on the ground listening to music with one headphone in, when a shadow fell over her. She looked up, shielding her eyes from the sun. It was the guy from earlier, the one with the crossbow, who kept looking at her.

'What you listening to?' He asked. Thalia motioned for him to sit down, and he did. She passed him a headphone and pressed play. He listened for a second before saying,

'The Rolling stones, huh good choice.' She nodded and began to sing quietly.

'You can't always get whatcha want' she sang softly. Daryl looked at her and smiled. Damn right. He sat with her for a while, listening to music and watching her. She was covered in tattoos, had tanned skin and dark green eyes. Her hair was dark black and long. She wasn't skinny, but she wasn't fat. Good he thought, they look weird when they're all skin and bone. He shook his head. He really shouldn't be thinking about her like that.

'Daryl!' he turned to see Merle beckoning him over. He removed the headphone.

'Thanks for letting me listen, it's been a long time since I heard some decent music' he said. She smiled.

'Thats ok' Thalia told him. She lay back down, tapping her foot in time to the music, still singing softly. Thalia felt very relaxed. When the CD ended, she packed it up, and took off in search of some company.

She ended up down at the lake, helping Lori and the other women do laundry. Carl and Sophia were down further playing in the shallow part of the water. She kept seeing Carol and Lori glance over nervously. She got up and walked over to them.

'Whatcha playin?' she asked. Carl looked at her and smiled.

'We're trying to make waves with our feet. Can you do that?' he asked. She smiled, she put her boot in the water and moved it from side to side.

'Like that?' she asked. Carl and Sophia nodded and began to copy her movements. In one quick movement she made a kick in the water and splashed them both. They giggled and squealed at the cold water, and began to splash her back.

Lori watched Thalia play with the kids in amusement.

'She fits in well, doesn't she' Carol said. Lori nodded.

'She's nice too, polite, helpful. Best never to judge people by their covers huh?' Lori said. Carol nodded and smiled.

'But do you think she was on drugs though?' Amy asked.

'No, one, she ain't got no track marks, and two, she's a wiccan' Carol said. The others stared at her in shock.

'What? I used to take Sophia to a toddler group, and one of the mothers there was a wiccan. She used to say 'Blessed be' all the time. They're big into nature, giving something back to the world. She told me that whatever they released into the world came back to them 3 times as strong, so they always tried do no harm' Carol explained. The others looked at each other, Lori and Andrea shrugged. Amy smiled.

'Thats pretty cool' she said.

That evening Thalia was sitting at the campfire with everyone, eating dinner, when Carol looked at her and asked 'So how come you're a wiccan, Thalia?' She smiled at her.

'Well it's the best way to express myself, and it teaches me to be strong' she said. Carol and Lori nodded. Thalia smiled and returned to her food. Daryl watched her from across the fire. She was pretty different from everyone else. He couldn't seem to get her out of his head. He wasn't sure if that was a bad thing though.


	2. Chapter 2

**Hello again! So I'm getting pretty obsessed with this story, but please tell me if you think its going to fast. I'm not gonna rush the romantic side cause thats important considering how closed off Daryl is. So read and enjoy :)**

Thalia woke the next day to the sounds of a heated argument. She wondered what was going on. She climbed down from her tree and went to investigate. Over by one of the cars Shane, Glenn, Merle and T-Dog were arguing. She went over to find out what the problem was. When she approached the group, Glenn turned to look at her.

'See I'd take Thalia, she knows how to act in a city!' Glenn cried.

'Wait, what's going on here?' Thalia asked.

'Shane thinks other people should know the route to get into the city, but the chances of us getting caught by walkers are like 100 percent higher than if I went on my own' Glenn told her. Thalia shrugged, Glenn was right. Too many people would attract unwanted attention. She told Shane this, and he looked pretty mad when she said it.

'Look, if we lose you Glenn, god forbid, we'll have no one to get extra supplies for us ok? Thats your job, and you're pretty damn good at it too. So just take the others this once, for me?' Shane pleaded. Glenn scowled. He knew Shane was right.

'Alright, who's coming? T-Dog?' Glenn asked.

'I'm in' Andrea and Merle chorused. Merle grinned.

'Blondie, you're coming too? Aww, that just made my day!' Merle cried. Thalia shook her head. She wished them luck and walked away.

She walked over to the campfire, where Lori and Carol had started on breakfast. Carl and Sophia looked pretty bored. She had an idea.

'Hey Lori, Carol. Would it be ok if I took Sophia and Carl down to the lake to wash up?' she asked. Lori and Carol looked at her gratefully.

'That would be most helpful. Carl grab your things from the tent and go with Thalia to wash up' Lori said. Carol told Sophia to do the same. When they were ready, Thalia grabbed her backpack, and led them down to the lake. They had brushed their teeth and washed their faces, and were just sitting and chatting, when Thalia heard a noise. She jumped up, to see a small group of walkers coming towards her and the kids.

'Quickly Carl, Sophia, climb up that tree ok? Don't worry about me just climb!' She told them. She pulled her knife from its sheaf, and stabbed the first walker straight through the eye. She stepped over him to get to the others.

Daryl heard the commotion and went to investigate. He saw Carl and Sophia safely up in a tree and Thalia taking on 4 walkers at once. He aimed his crossbow, and took out one that was creeping up on her. He ran over, pulled the arrow from the walkers head and stabbed another through the eye. Thalia stabbed another up under the chin, and pulled out her knife. She whirled around looking for the others and came face to face with Daryl. She looked at him and smiled.

'Thanks' she said.

'S'alright. Heard the noise. Good call getting the kids in the tree.' Daryl said. She smiled.

'Yeah, they can't fight, and I knew they'd be safer up there, so' she shrugged. 'What are we gonna do with the bodies?' She asked.

'Leave that to me, you get those kids back to their moms, and let Shane know what happened.' Daryl said. Thalia nodded, she paused, and then kissed his cheek.

'Thanks again' she said. She helped Carl and Sophia climb down, pulled them into a hug, and took them back to camp. Daryl stared after her. He shook his head and got to work.

'Mom!' Carl and Sophia cried running straight to Lori and Carol.

'What?' Asked Lori.

'We ran into some walkers down by the lake' Thalia told them.

'Thalia was awesome mom! She got me and Sophia in a tree and then took down two walkers, before Daryl came and helped!' Carl exclaimed. Lori and Carol shared a glance.

'Thank you, for our children' Carol said. Thalia nodded.

'I sure weren't about to let anything happen to them' Thalia said. 'I better go find Shane let him know what happened.'

'Can we come?' Carl and Sophia asked. Thalia smiled.

'I think you should stay with your mom's for a while. I'll be back in 5 minutes ok?' She told them. She took off looking for Shane. She found him keeping watch with Dale. She quickly told the him what had happened down at the lake.

'My god, you ok? Carl and Sophia?' Shane asked.

'I'm fine, their fine, their with Lori and Carol. I had some help though, from Daryl. He's taking care of the corpses' Thalia said. Shane nodded.

'Good. Thank God you were there. If the kids were on their own - I dont even want to think about it. Thank you so much Thalia. I owe you.' Shane said. Thalia shook her head. She'd just done what a normal person would've done. There was no way she was gonna abandon those kids to the walkers.

Around noon, Daryl walked back up to camp. He saw Thalia hanging upside down from a tree. What the hell? That chick was weird. He walked over to her. She opened her eyes and looked at him. She raised her eyebrows at him.

'Hey Daryl. What's up?' She asked. He smirked.

'Why you hangin' upside down?' He asked. She swung herself back and forth.

'Just hangin' she grinned. Daryl laughed. She was pretty weird. Thalia giggled.

'You're weird, you know that right?' Daryl asked. She shrugged.

'I like swinging upside down. It's fun' she smiled. Daryl smirked.

'C'mon, I'm going hunting and I could use a second set of eyes' he said. Thalia dropped out of the tree. She straightened up and smiled.

'Sure ok. Lets go' she said. Daryl took the lead, slowly walking through the forest, looking at the floor, tracking animals. Thalia kept her eyes peeled for any sign of walkers. There was a loud noise, and they both stopped dead. Daryl turned slowly and motioned for Thalia to cover him. She followed him through the forest. Daryl stopped and grabbed her hand pulling her back.

'Shh, I think it's a buck but I ain't sure' he whispered. He hadn't let go of her hand yet. Thalia peeped around the tree, looking for any sign of deer. She spotted an eye through the bushes, and pointed it out to Daryl with her free hand. Daryl took aim, and shot an arrow at it. Crunch. The arrow hit the deer straight in the skull. Thalia breathed a sigh of relief. At least it didn't suffer. Daryl looked around before heading off to get the carcass. He hauled it onto his back.

'We'd better get this back before the walkers smell it' he said. Thalia nodded, they walked back slowly, quietly. Ready for any sign of an attack. On their return to camp, Daryl placed the deer next to his tent and began skinning and gutting the animal. Thalia had to look away. She went back to her tree, climbed up and hung upside down again. She began singing softly to herself.

Daryl could hear her singing away, sounded like a Guns 'n' Roses song, but he weren't sure. She was quiet, helpful, and didn't bawl like a girl when he killed the deer. He wasn't sure if any of the other women could've handled hunting like she did. She fascinated him on some level. He couldn't keep her out of his head. She didn't put her opinions across, yet people always asked her for it. She fit into the group pretty well. He had to stop thinking about her. This wasn't the time for women, he needed to keep himself alive.

Thalia swung back and forth from her place in the tree. She was quite content swinging there. Carl wandered over to her and smiled when he saw her. She smiled back at him.

'Can you teach me how to do that?' He asked. She nodded. She lowered herself from the tree.

'Pick a branch that you can almost reach' she said. Carl found one. 'Now climb up to that branch and sit on it' she told him. She did the same so he could see what she meant.

'Now turn around. And lean slowly down letting your legs take your weight' she instructed.

'Wow! This is cool!' Carl cried. Thalia taught him how to swing back and forth like she did and soon they were having tons of fun, Sophia showed up and Carl showed her how to hang upside down like him. They were swinging away, and Thalia was teaching them a song, when Lori and Carol found them.

'Well, look at you all!' Lori cried. Carl and Sophia beamed at them.

'We're just like Thalia mom!' Sophia said excitedly. Thalia smiled at Lori and Carol.

'Don't worry I had them pick a branch that wasn't too low off the ground just in case. I didn't want them to fall and really hurt themselves. Ok kids, I'm gonna teach you how to get up safely now ok?' She said. She pulled herself up and watched as Carl and Sophia did the same. She smiled, they were fast learners.

'Mom! Did you see me? How cool was that?' Carl cried.

'It was brilliant! Now go on back to camp, dinner's almost ready' she told him. Sophia and Carl ran back to camp, and Thalia climbed out of the tree.

'Thanks for keeping them know their safe with you' Lori said. Thalia beamed.

'Thats ok, they're good kids. Besides they need to be having fun, or they'll forget all about being children' she said. Carol nodded. They chatted quietly as they walked back to camp.

They had just finished dinner when Glenn and the others returned. Again there was a newcomer. Lori turned to look at the group, and gasped. Carl looked and jumped up.

'Dad!' He ran straight over to Rick, who hugged him hard. Lori went over and kissed him, and hugged him too. Thalia went over to Glenn.

'Where'd you find this one, Glenn?' She asked. Glenn laughed.

'He was stuck in a tank, looks like he knows Lori and Carl. And Shane too' Glenn said, as Shane went up to hug Rick too. Thalia turned to T-Dog and Andrea, and asked if they were ok, they nodded. Daryl came over and joined them. Thalia smiled at him. He returned the smile. Then he froze.

'Where's Merle?' He demanded. Glenn and the others looked guilty. Rick stepped forward.

'Daryl right? Merle told me about you. Look, your brother got violent and I had to handcuff him to a pole up on a roof' he explained. Daryl looked at him disbelievingly.

'I had the key. I dropped it. It went down the drain, I'm real sorry Daryl' T-Dog said, softly.

'So you left him there?' Daryl cried. He knew they should never have joined up with these people.

'We'll go back for him in the morning ok?' Rick said. 'It's too dangerous right now. I'm sorry. This is on me, and I'll help you find him, tomorrow.' Daryl nodded and stalked off. Thalia followed him. He went to his tent and climbed inside.

'Knock knock' Thalia said, poking her head through the flap. She climbed into the tent and sat next to him.

'I'm sorry about your brother' she said. Daryl nodded. She nudged him with her elbow. 'We'll go find him tomorrow. I'll come help.' Daryl looked at her. Was she for real?

'Look, you don't have to do that. I'll go find him on my own' he told her. Thalia looked at him, was he trying to prove something? She shook her head.

'It's fine I'll come help. I don't mind' she repeated. Daryl looked down, continuing to clean his crossbow. Thalia sighed. She watched him clean his crossbow for a moment. Daryl looked up suddenly and caught her eye. Thalia blushed and looked down. Daryl looked away thinking hard. Why would she blush when he looked at her? He'd never had a woman react like that when he looked at them. She was still looking down. He watched her play with her hair, her cheeks were still red. He wasn't very good at reading signs, but this was a pretty big one. He stumbled unsure of what to do. Did he kiss her? What if she rejected him? They could be dead tomorrow though. And if she did, him and Merle could just take off, Merle wouldn't want to stay with these people after what they'd done to him. He leaned over and put his hand on her chin, he pulled her face towards him and pressed his lips to hers. Thalia gasped, and kissed him back, her hands went to his hair and she curled her fingers in it. Daryl put one hand on her waist, and pulled the other through her hair. Thalia moaned. He kissed her harder, and pushed her down, holding himself above her. Thalia wrapped her legs around his waist, and he pressed against her. She moaned again. Daryl moved his lips to her neck and kissed down until he reached her breasts. He hesitated, and Thalia opened her eyes.

'It's ok. We don't have to' she said breathlessly. Daryl looked at her. 'I'd like to. But we can stop, if you want.' Daryl sat up. He was breathing heavily. He wanted her, but he didn't want to push her. Thalia looked at him. She put her hand on his cheek. He looked at her. She pulled him back down and kissed him again. He moved his knee in between her legs, and she wrapped her legs around his waist again. He pulled his shirt off, and helped Thalia take hers off. He reached behind her back and undid her bra. Thalia undid her shorts, and he pulled them down. He undid his trousers and reached for Merle's bag and pulled out a condom. He pulled it on, and yanked Thalia's panties down. He entered her, and she let out a small gasp. He pulled out and slammed into her, and she groaned. Thalia moaned, and put her hands in his hair tugging him down for another kiss. He pulled away breathlessly, and groaned as she clenched around him. She moaned and lifted off the ground slightly as she came. Daryl watched her and came to his own climax. He rolled off her and laid down panting. Thalia stretched, feeling sore. She laid her head on his chest and sighed. Daryl draped her his arm across her.

'Well, it's a good job your tent is quite far from camp' Thalia said. Daryl chuckled.

'Yeah, we were pretty lucky with that' he said. She lifted her head, and kissed him again. Daryl smiled.

'So, are we just friends with benefits, or were you thinking of maybe taking it further?' Thalia asked. She didn't want to make him uncomfortable, but she had to know what he was thinking, he was so hard to read. Daryl looked at her. Friends with benefits? What the fuck? He thought that she liked him, that that was why she slept with him.

'What do you want?' He asked gruffly. She sat up and looked at him. She smiled.

'Well, if I'm honest, I'd like something more, I mean I can't seem to get you out of my head-' Daryl pulled her down to him and kissed her. Good, he didn't have to attempt to explain his feelings. Thalia smiled at him. She put her panties on, she looked around for his shirt and pulled it on. She winked at him, and stuck her head out of the tent. Everyone was asleep, she ran out and grabbed her bag, and ran back in. She stumbled and landed in Daryl's lap. She smiled, and pulled out a pack of cigarettes. She handed him one, and he grinned. Thalia lit hers up and then handed him her lighter. They chatted for a while, before falling asleep, her head resting on his chest, and his arm draped over her.


	3. Chapter 3

**I know I know two updates in one day? But I'm obsessed and had nothing to do today. I got a new poster yesterday, one of Daryl and it takes pride of place on my wall. So let me know what you think about this one. Even if it's to tell me what I'm doing wrong! To my new follower I love you!**

When Thalia woke up, Daryl was gone. She rolled over and found he'd left her some breakfast. She smiled and ate it, before getting dressed. She stumbled out of the tent, to find Daryl deep in conversation with Rick. She walked over to them. Daryl turned and smiled at her. Thalia returned the smile.

'Look Daryl, we need more than you and me, let's get Glenn and T-Dog involved ok? Then we've got back up' Rick said. Daryl nodded, and Rick went off to find them. Daryl turned to Thalia.

'I want you to stay here, Thalia. I don't want nothin' to happen to you ok?' He said. Thalia frowned. She liked that he wanted to protect her, it turned her on if she was honest. But she could take care of herself.

'Look-' she started to say, but Daryl interrupted her.

'I know you can take care of yourself, but I'd feel better if you were here, ok?' He said, taking her hand. She blushed and looked down, but he took her face in his hands and made her look at him. He kissed her gently, and she smiled. 'I just don't want anythin' to happen to you ok? You already know I care about you. I just got you, let me keep you for longer.' Thalia beamed. She kissed him again, pulling him to her, wrapping her arms around his neck.

'Ok, I'll stay here' she said between kisses. Daryl smiled and kissed her back. Thalia pulled away reluctantly, when she saw Rick coming back with Glenn and T-Dog following. She kissed him one last time, and hugged him hard. She blew him a kiss as she walked off.

'Well well well. What happened with you two?' Glenn asked, eyes wide. Thalia laughed and hugged him. She wished them luck and walked back to camp.

When the other women found out about her and Daryl they bombarded her with questions. She smiled and answered most of them, except the really rude ones. She laughed a lot at those and just smiled secretively.

'Seriously though, did you sleep with him last night?' Andrea asked. Thalia giggled and looked away blushing.

'She did!' Andrea shouted. The others all laughed. Thalia looked away from them all and giggled again.

'C'mon, spill!' Amy cried.

'I'm not telling any of you nosey people a thing! That would be rude!' Thalia said.

'Was he good? C'mon tell us that at least!' Andrea begged. Thalia laughed.

'Well ladies, lets put it this way, I'm pretty sore today' she teased laughing. The others burst into laughter, while Thalia blushed.

By the time the evening rolled around Thalia was beginning to worry. Daryl wasn't back yet and she had no idea when he would be. She was chewing her nails, something she always did when she was nervous. Lori was feeling the same, she was very quiet. Lori and Carol went to put Sophia and Carl to bed, but just as Carol reached her tent, she screamed. Suddenly walkers appeared from grabbed Sophia and Carl and helped them up into trees. She helped Shane take down as many walkers as she could. he turned to take down one to her right, but it already had an arrow in its head. She grinned, Daryl for sure. She turned and took out a walker to her left and kicked one in the head that was aiming for Glenn. He turned nodded at her and went right back to taking down another one. Thalia took out more until they were all gone. Suddenly Andrea screamed. Thalia turned to see a walker biting Amy. She ran over and took it down. Andrea helped Amy to the floor. Thalia knelt next to her, and held Amy's hand. Tears rolled down her face.

'Amy, Amy its ok, you can let go, don't hold on, we can see that you're in pain. I'll look after Andrea, don't worry.' Thalia told her, gasping for breath. Amy closed her eyes.

'No, no, no!' Andrea screamed. Thalia wrapped her arms around her and held on, crying just as hard. Andrea moved out of Thalia's arms and laid her head down on Amy's chest. Daryl took Thalia's hands and helped her up, pulling her to him. He held her close to him, while she sobbed. When her sobs subsided, he lifted her face and wiped away her tears. He kissed her and took her by the hand to his tent. Once inside he pulled her onto his lap, lit a cigarette for her, and held her close to him. Thalia fell asleep in his arms.

When Thalia opened her eyes the next day, Daryl was laying next to her watching her.

'Were you watching me sleep?' She asked. Daryl smiled.

'Maybe. You look so peaceful' he said. Thalia smiled back at him.

'Idiot' she said. 'Did you find Merle?' she asked. Daryl's face fell.

'No. He'd cut his hand off to escape though. Tough son of a bitch' he said. Thalia leaned in and kissed him. She laid her head on his chest and put her arms around him.

'Rick wants to head to the CDC. I agree with him, any news would be helpful right about now. Shane wants to go to Fort Bennington. What do you think?' Daryl asked her. Thalia thought for a moment. The CDC would have answers. Fort Bennington could be a safe haven for them. But what if it wasn't? What if it was overrun? But then they both could be. At least at the CDC they could get shelter and answers.

'I think we should go to the CDC. I mean Fort Bennington could be overrun. I'm so tired Daryl' she sighed. Daryl sat up taking her with him.

'No, don't you dare give up. Don't you dare!' He shouted. Thalia's eyes widened in shock.

'You don't get to make me like you, sleep with me, make me feel things for you that I've never felt before, and then just give up on me!' Tears streamed down Thalia's face. She was so tired. She wasn't sure if she could take it any more, the constant fear of being hurt. And now she worried about Daryl all the time. She was so scared, terrified of him being taken from her. There was a big hole where her heart used to be, because he'd taken it. If she lost him, that would be it for her. She'd have to go too.

'Daryl, I can't lose you' she choked out. Daryl pulled her to him, he held her tight, and she held on as if she were sinking.

'I can't be me without you. You make me make sense. You're my something to live for. Ok? You're the reason I wake up in the morning, I can't live without you Daryl. This is it for me. You're it for me. You've made me feel something that I haven't felt in years. You're the first guy that I can open up too, that I could tell anything to. You know what happened to me, how I only got away because the walkers were feeding on my friends. That I've been on my own for so long, I don't even know how to act around other people. Daryl, I can't be without you' she sobbed. Daryl held her tighter.

'Thats how I feel. You're my reason to live. You're the reason I fight so hard to survive. So don't give up right now, ok? I'm going nowhere trust me, I ain't leaving you for nothin. You're all I want. If the whole world ended, I would be ok if you were with me. You're my anchor ok? You keep me sane' he told her. She pulled away from him, and looked into his eyes, searching for a sign that he meant it. She found it. He kissed her hard, pushing her down beneath him, one hand in her hair, the other under her shirt. She helped him pull his shirt off, undid his pants, pulled her shirt off for him. He pulled her shorts off, and then her panties. He found a condom, and entered her. She moaned, and he pushed harder. She moved against him and he groaned, savouring the feeling. He pulled her hair, and she yanked him towards her for another kiss. He growled and bit her neck. He kissed down her jaw to her throat, and moved to her neck and kissed and nibbled, making her moan in pleasure. She tightened around him, and with a low moan climaxed, calling his name. He climaxed as she ended hers. He collapsed on top of her, but she liked his weight there. She felt protected and safe. He rolled off, they were sweaty and panting heavily.

After a while she got dressed, kissed him and grabbed some clean clothes.

'I'm going down to wash up, you coming?' she asked. He nodded pulling his shirt and pants back on. They clambered out of the tent, and he took her hand pulling her close, he wrapped an arm around her. They walked to the lake in comfortable silence. Daryl kept watch while she stripped off and waded out. She washed her hair and then her body. Daryl took in the sight of her naked body, eyes widened, he could feel himself going hard, so he turned away. Thalia dried herself quickly and pulled on her underwear and then some denim shorts. Lastly she pulled on her favourite shirt, it was white and showed her lacy blue bra off. It had 'memento mori' written on it in black calligraphy. It reminded her to live every day like it was her last. Daryl walked down and kissed her. She looked up at him.

'Do you think this is love?' She asked.

'All I know is, I can't live without you. So I 'spose so' he said, touching her cheek with the back of his hand. She smiled. Daryl went off to wash, while she dried her hair and kept watch. Daryl washed and got out and quickly dried himself. He pulled on his pants, while Thalia watched. He walked over to her carrying his shirt.

'You ok?' He asked huskily. She shook her head.

'Not if you don't put your shirt on. I'm gonna jump you in a minute otherwise' she told him. He laughed and leaned down to kiss her.

'Seriously' she warned. He laughed again and pulled his shirt on. They walked back to camp hand in hand. Daryl was telling her about the time he got lost in the woods, and accidentally wiped his ass with poison ivy. Thalia was laughing so hard, that when they walked into camp, she didn't even notice the silence. Not until Lori came and hugged her.

'Thank you, for my son' she said as she pulled away. 'Thats twice now you've saved him.'

'Well, lets not make it a third ok? But I'll always be there no matter what, Daryl too' Thalia told her, Daryl nodding along in agreement. Daryl went over to talk to Shane, while Thalia hugged Glenn and T-Dog.

'You made it back ok then?' She asked. Glenn nodded.

'You won't believe what happened though' he said. Rick came over, and pulled Thalia into a hug. She hugged him back grinning.

'Hey Glenn! Ricks hugging me!' she exclaimed.

'For Carl' he said. She laughed.

'I'm his bodyguard didn't ya know? Sophia's too. And well, I got me a pretty good bodyguard too, so they're doubly protected' she said. Rick smiled and ruffled her hair. She scowled at him. He laughed and walked away to hug Carl.

'Alright, we're heading to the CDC in about an hour, so let's get packed up and on the road' Rick announced. Daryl came back for Thalia and together they took his tent down and packed away their stuff.

'When we leave, I want you to come on the bike with me ok? I don't wanna get separated again' Daryl said. Thalia nodded. She wasn't going anywhere without him.

They set off around midday, Thalia holding onto Daryl's waist. They were following the RV and Rick and Shane. They made a stop not an hour later. Thalia thought it must be about Jim. Carol had told her about Jim being bitten in the attack last night. Sure enough when they stopped there was a discussion over what to do. Thalia stepped into the RV and found Jim. He looked awful.

'Hey Jim. How you doing?' Thalia asked.

'Oh I'm peachy' Jim said. Thalia laughed.

'What do you wanna do?' She asked.

'I think you all should leave me here, with a gun with a bullet in it. I don't want to become one of those things' Jim told her. He was tired and he was ready to go. Thalia nodded and went outside and told the others. When they placed Jim in the shade of a large tree, Thalia left her CD player with him. He tried to give it back, but she wouldn't let him.

'Something from the past. When life was good. You can listen to it while you get ready, ok? Don't worry, it's my gift to you' she said, and he smiled. They left him there listening to music.

Thalia was quiet until they reached the CDC. Then it was time to kick some walker butt. She jumped into action covering Carl and Sophia like usual. When they reached the door, Shane began yelling at Rick. But Rick just ignored him and carried on yelling at the door.

'You'll need mandatory blood tests to make sure you're not infected. Come in quickly once the doors are closed, they're closed for good' a voice said. They grabbed their stuff and scrambled inside.


	4. Chapter 4

**So another chapter for you guys! This was a little harder to write than the others. I hope you like the way I've portrayed Daryl here. Let me know what you think. Thanks for reading as always :)**

After their blood tests, a guy appeared.

'My name is Dr Jenner' he said. He was tall, and average looking. Thalia gripped Daryl's hand more tightly. Daryl looked at her and mouthed 'nerd'. She laughed and had to cover her mouth and pretend to cough. Daryl looked smug. She elbowed him in the stomach and he doubled over, she turned and stuck her tongue out at him. He caught up with her and took her hand again.

'Wait till later. I'll get you when you least expect it' he whispered in her ear. She stuck her fingers up at him and walked on. They entered a massive room with screens everywhere and computers at every desk. Thalia walked over to one and turned it on. Cool, it had pacman on it she thought. Glenn had done the same next to her, and they had a competition to see who could get the farthest. Everyone else was having a serious discussion with Jenner, but Thalia and Glenn were content playing pacman. Sophia and Carl watched them. The others had started to file out and Daryl watched as Thalia and Glenn got to the last level, and then both died at the same time.

'DAMN!' They both shouted. Daryl laughed.

'You guys are such geeks' he said. Thalia poked her tongue at him. She danced past him following T-Dog out of the door. Rick looked around and nodded, this was a good place.

When they were all settled at the table in the kitchen, Thalia sitting in between Daryl and Glenn, Jenner began to explain things. Thalia wasn't really paying attention as she was too tired to function properly. She'd just eaten her first real food in months and she was full up and warm. Daryl's arm was draped around her shoulders, and she leaned her head against his shoulder. She could feel her eyes closing.

'Hey Thalia, would you mind taking Carl and Sophia to brush their teeth for me?' Lori asked. Thalia nodded.

'No problem, c'mon guys' she kissed Daryl and led Carl and Sophia out of the room and down the hall to a bathroom. They brushed their teeth together and washed their faces. Thalia took them for a wander. They found a rec room. Books lined the walls, there were comfy looking couches and bean bags and even a ping-pong table. Thalia collapsed onto a couch.

'Thalia, is Daryl your boyfriend?' Sophia asked. Thalia laughed.

'Yeah, kinda' she told the little girl. Sophia thought for a second.

'What do you mean kinda?' She asked. Thalia shook her head.

'I dunno, it's still quite new. Maybe you should ask him' she suggested. Sophia nodded.

'Ok I will' she said and took off. Thalia laughed loudly and Carl looked at her. She smiled and motioned for him to sit next to her. She told him stories about the moon and stars.

There was a noise at the door, and she turned to see Lori and Daryl watching them. Carl jumped up and hugged his mom. Daryl came and sat next to her while Lori took Carl off to bed. He put his arms around her, and she leaned into him.

'So why did Sophia come and ask me if I was your boyfriend?' He asked her. Thalia laughed and kissed him.

'She asked me, and I said kinda. She asked what I meant, and I suggested she ask you. I didn't think she actually would' she said. Daryl chuckled.

'C'mon woman, let's go get a drink' Daryl said. He led her back to the kitchen where Glenn and T-Dog were drinking.

'Alcohol?!' Thalia cried. She immediately began searching for a bottle. 'Aha!' she cried holding up a bottle of scotch. She poured some out for everyone, and raised her glass. 'To new friends, new beginnings and hopefully a new life' she said.

'Amen' said T-Dog clinking his glass against hers. Daryl kissed her cheek and smiled. He wanted to tell her how much she meant to him, but he wasn't sure how to say it. She knew that she was his reason for fighting, for surviving. But he wanted to tell her more. She smiled so much when he told her how he felt. How did he put into words the feeling he got when she smiled at him? Or when she held his hand? Or how beautiful she was? He was never good with words. He only managed to tell her a little of what he felt for her last night, and that was because she'd put his feelings into words for him. Maybe he should do something for her. Make her something.

The night wore on, and Glenn challenged Daryl to a drinking competition. Daryl agreed and got Glenn majorly drunk. Thalia chatted with T-Dog about cars and tattoos. In the end Glenn passed out, so Daryl helped T-Dog take him to a room. Thalia finished her drink, and went in search of Daryl. She found him, standing outside a door.

'This our room?' She asked. He nodded and pulled her inside. Daryl sat down and pulled a piece of wood out of his backpack. Thalia went to shower and clean up. Afterwards she felt so much better. She pulled on her clean panties and set some to soak in the sink. She'd stolen one of Daryl's shirts and she put it on and went back to the bedroom. She found Daryl focused on carving a piece of wood.

'Whatcha doing?' She asked. Daryl looked up.

'Making summat. You'll find out soon enough. You tired? You wanna lay down?' He asked. Thalia nodded and lay down next to him. Within minutes she was fast asleep. Daryl leaned over and brushed the hair out of her eyes.

When Thalia woke the next day she found Daryl gone. She sat up, and pulled on a pair of cotton shorts. She padded out of their room and down the hall to the kitchen. She smelled food. As she entered she found T-Dog cooking and Glenn sitting at the table nursing a coffee and looking like crap. She laughed and Glenn winced at the noise.

'Ooh that looks bad. God knows why you thought you could out drink Daryl. Honestly. You need some food. I'll go get you something' she said.

'No, no food, I'll puke' Glenn said, leaning his head on the table. Daryl came in, saw Glenn and chuckled.

'Idiot' he said as he kissed Thalia on the forehead. He went and got himself a plate of T-Dog's special eggs, and sat down to eat. Thalia hopped up onto the counter and grabbed herself a glass of water. T-Dog passed her a plate and she dug in greedily. Everyone filed in and ate breakfast, chatting about what a good night last night was. Daryl motioned to Thalia to follow him, and she did wondering what was up. As she stepped into their room, Daryl turned round and gave her a little package.

'What's this?' She asked surprised. Daryl shrugged.

'Just summat I made you. Open it' he said. Thalia ripped open the package and found a small wooden arrow-head on a piece of thick black string. She smiled, it was beautiful. She kissed him hard, her arms around his neck. He held her tightly.

'I love it. Could you put it on for me?' She asked. Daryl nodded and took the necklace, he placed it around her neck and tied it tightly, so it wouldn't fall off. Thalia touched the arrow-head and smiled again.

Thalia walked slowly from room to room, she was trying to find Daryl. She knew he and Rick had gone to speak to Jenner about the walker thing, but that was hours ago. She wandered along the hallways opening doors looking for him. She came to a big door, and pushed it open. Daryl was there, sitting on his own and watching Rick and Shane talk to Jenner. She walked over to him, and he took her hand. Everyone was in the room, even the kids. Looked like decision time.

'When the generator fails, this place is incinerated' Jenner said. Thalia froze. Incinerated. Fire. We'd be burnt alive. Fire. Daryl waved his hand in front of Thalia's face.

'THALIA!' He shouted, he tried snapping his fingers, tapping her face, nothing. What the hell? Rick had managed to get the door open, so Daryl grabbed Thalia and threw her over his shoulder and carried her out. They made it to the RV in time and watched as the place blew up. Daryl laid Thalia down on a bunk in the RV. She was still staring eyes wide. What was going on?

'She ok?' Dale asked.

'Does it look like she's ok?' Daryl snapped. Thalia was stuck in the past. Memories from that night flooded her brain, though she'd tried so hard to lock them away.

_She was 18 and at uni. She'd gone out with friends to a house party. She was enjoying herself when she smelled the smoke. Within minutes the house was on fire and she couldn't get out. Coughing she tried to open a window but it wouldn't budge. She tried to smash it but she couldn't find anything heavy enough. Tears streamed down her face. She was trapped._

_She woke up in hospital covered in burns. The doctors tried to fix them with skin grafts, but she was still covered in terrible scars. The landlord had to pay compensation to everyone for faulty wiring. She got her tattoos to cover up the scars. The tattoo artist had looked at her disbelievingly when she told him what she wanted._

_'These are big pieces, you've never had a tattoo before right? These will hurt, it's gonna be a lot of hours sitting still' he told her. She took her hoodie off._

_'I've dealt with pain before. And sitting still for hours. Just do them' she said showing him her burn scars._

Thalia couldn't get rid of the smell of smoke and burnt flesh out of her nose, she felt like she was choking. She sat up suddenly and freaked out everyone around her. Daryl breathed a out slowly. She was back. Thalia coughed and coughed. She retched but nothing came up. They were on the road, jammed in because Daryl had refused to leave her side or his bike. Glenn, Andrea and T-Dog were there too.

'Stop, stop!' She cried. As soon as they pulled over she bolted outside. She retched again and this time she vomited. She breathed heavily, inhaling the clean air. She couldn't believe that it was clean. She put her hands on her knees hunched over gasping for air. Daryl watched her from a safe distance away. He knew she needed time to recover, that much was obvious. He stopped the others from going over, but before he knew it Sophia had darted around him and ran over to her. Sophia made Thalia sit on the ground. She felt Thalia's forehead to see if she was warm. She was.

'Mom, we got some water?' She asked, and Carol brought her some, checking Thalia's temperature as well. Thalia was still breathing heavily, inhaling the air like a drug. God, she thought she'd buried that memory so deep that it would never resurface. Daryl came over with a lit cigarette and she took it gratefully. It was weird that she could smoke even though fire was her worst fear, but cigarettes were mini fires and she could always throw it away from her. Daryl took her hand and looked her in the eyes. Thalia looked straight back. He pulled her to him and hugged her hard.

'You ok? I thought I'd lost you for a minute there' he said. Thalia nodded, she was holding the necklace she'd made for him. Daryl smiled when he saw.

'I need a minute ok?' She said and took off. She paced for a few feet, quietly singing to herself and pushing the memory far away. When she returned only Daryl was waiting for her. He pulled her into a hug and held on tightly. She hugged him back just as hard.

'You wanna talk about that, or do you need a little while?' He asked. Thalia nodded.

'I need a while' she said. Daryl nodded. She smiled gratefully.

'So everyone made it out?' She asked. Daryl looked down.

'Jaqui stayed' he said. Thalia nodded, unsurprised.

'She'd lost her children' was all she said. Daryl led her back to the RV. He laid her down in a bunk, and waited with her until she fell asleep. As he went outside, everyone looked at him. Glenn came forward first.

'Is she ok?' He asked. Daryl shook his head.

'She won't talk about it not even to me. I don't know what happened, all I know is Jenner said we'd be incinerated and she froze. She kept gasping for air when she came back. Like she couldn't breathe' he said. Carol nodded.

'Well we'll wait till she's ready then' Dale said. Glenn looked down.

'I wish she'd talk to us. We could help' he said. Daryl looked at him.

'She ain't ready. When she is, she'll explain.' He said firmly. He went back inside the RV to check on Thalia. She was still fast asleep, clutching the necklace he'd made her. He sat and leaned against the bunk she was in.

'Look Daryl, now that you know she's safe, are you gonna ride your bike?' Rick asked. Daryl turned to look at him. Was he stupid?

'I ain't leaving her' was all he said. He tossed his keys to Rick. 'Let T-Dog ride it. He's the only one I trust. Don't let Glenn anywhere near it!' He ordered. Rick nodded.

Daryl watched Thalia sleep for a while before drifting off himself. Glenn watched them both, he was really worried. Thalia was always calm. She never freaked out, not when the walkers were attacking, or when Amy died, or even when Jim was bitten. She was always keeping everyone calm, helping everyone else. He'd never seen her like that. He talked to Rick about it. But Rick said they should let her come to terms with whatever had made her like that. Glenn suspected it was to do with the faint scars he'd seen peeping out from underneath her tattoos. He didn't know what they were from, but he knew they weren't good.

'Dale, you think she'll be ok?' he asked. Dale looked at him.

'Oh sure. She's got her bodyguard, and he'll be there when she's ready to talk. It was probably a bad memory. Everyone's got 'em' he said.

Thalia tossed in her sleep, it woke Daryl and he took her hand, and held it until she quieted. God, if he lost her. He couldn't even think about it. She was his life now.


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's note: So guys I'm really sorry it's been so long. I know I'm a terrible person. I've had a bad few weeks, and haven't been able to concentrate on writing. I'm back now though. Hopefully I'll get another chapter up by saturday, if not it'll be monday, cause I'm going to see my brother on sunday. Thanks for reading, again I'm really sorry and I love you all. **

When Thalia woke the next day she laid in bed for a while before sitting up. Daryl was sitting on the floor leaning against her bunk. She laid her hand on his head, stroking his hair. He laid his hand on hers.

'You sleep ok?' He asked. Thalia nodded. She knew she needed to explain. But she needed a cigarette. She climbed out of bed, Daryl plonked herself down at the table, and lit herself a cigarette. Dale looked at her and just nodded, knowing she'd need it.

'So, when I was 18, I was in a pretty bad fire. Got burned up pretty bad. That's why I got my tattoos. It's also why I never offer to cook, or help build or make the fire. I steer clear of it as best I can. I am sorry about yesterday though. It can't have been easy getting me out of there as well as yourselves' Thalia said, taking a long drag of her cigarette as she did. Glenn hugged her, and Daryl took her hand. Phew, she thought, thank Goddess that was over.

Soon they stopped, ready to go in search for supplies, which they'd become low on, especially water, which they hadn't had since they left the CDC. When they stopped, they all jumped out of the RV, which was smoking pretty badly.

'Looks like this'll need fixing again' Dale said grimly. Thalia turned to Rick who was looking at her.

'I'm ok now' she told him. He pulled her into a hug, and held her for a long time. When he let go, he studied her face, before nodding.

'Really, I'm fine. I've been worse. I'll live. What are we looking for? Just supplies?' She asked. Rick nodded. She set off searching car after car for anything interesting. She found a couple of boxes of food, and books for the kids. She also found a copy of her favourite book, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. She walked along, searching, a smile on her face. She heard a noise, a shuffling of feet. She turned and came face to face with a walker. She quickly took care of it, and climbed onto a tall truck, to see if there were any more. She spotted a herd coming their way. She laid down as flat as possible, so that they wouldn't find her. She bit her lip, thinking of the others. Of Daryl. She closed her eyes, and sang to herself in her head. Take me down to the paradise city, where the grass is green and the girls are pretty, oh, won't you please take me home, she sang in her mind. She heard the sounds of walkers crawling past the truck, the moans and shuffling reaching her ears. She pressed her face to the trucks roof. She bit the inside of her cheek to stop her from crying out for the others. She listened, every nerve standing on end, as the herd passed by. She lifted her head slowly, until she saw the last of the walkers disappear out of sight. She climbed down, quietly, and ran towards the others. She found Carol in Lori's arms sobbing. She looked at Glenn for an explanation.

'Walkers made Sophia freak, she ran off and Rick followed her' Glenn told her. Daryl took her hand and gripped it firmly, scanning her face. She looked at him, and he pulled her to him, holding her tightly.

'I should be out there, looking for her' she said, pulling away. Daryl, Glenn and Dale protested.

'No way. Rick's out there he'll bring her back' Daryl said. Everyone nodded in agreement, even Carol.

'The group needs you Thalia, Rick will bring Sophia back to me' Carol said, taking Thalia's hands in her own. Thalia shook her head mutely. She couldn't breathe, she needed to do something. Break something.

'I'm gonna go hunt some walkers. I need to do something. I'll be fine' she said, when they started to open their mouths to protest. She walked away, singing under her breath to keep herself calm. She stalked up the highway looking for any sign of walkers. She heard a noise and turned knife out, to see Daryl holding a cigarette out for her. She sighed in relief, and took it, Daryl lit it for her once she placed it in her mouth. She took a long drag, and felt some of her stress float away. She continued to hunt, taking drags on the cigarette periodically until she'd finished. She hauled herself up onto the roof of a car, and sat there watching and waiting. Daryl watched her, he could hear her singing softly to herself. He was real worried about her, but he didn't know what to say to reassure her. He knew how much she loved Sophia, but he wasn't about to let her charge off after her, when they didn't know how many walkers were about. He wasn't gonna lose her like that. He'd go and help look for Sophia. That would put her mind at ease, he hoped.

Thalia was laying on the roof of the RV looking up at the sky when Daryl returned. She heard the conversation, Sophia hadn't been found. She sang lullabies and said a prayer to the Goddess that Sophia would be found quickly and safely. She felt useless, like she'd failed Sophia, and Carol. She turned and lay on her stomach, face pressed against the RV's roof. She sang quietly to herself to keep out the bad thoughts.

'Thalia?' Carl had climbed up, and laid down next to her. She turned to look at him.

'What's up Carl?' She asked, smiling at him. Carl looked real worried about something, probably Sophia, she thought.

'Do you think they'll find Sophia?' He asked nervously, like he was afraid of her answer.

'Of course, it's only a matter of time. She'll be back before you know it' she reassured him. He nodded. She turned and laid on her back, and pointed out pictures in the clouds to Carl.

In the evening, Thalia was lying on the floor of the RV singing. She knew she was losing it, but she couldn't seem to care. Daryl kept watching her nervously. He knew she loved Sophia like a little sister, but she needed to keep it together. He looked around, and saw Carol crying quietly.

'I'm gonna go look for the girl' he said and walked out. Thalia closed her eyes and carried on singing.

When Thalia woke the next day, she found Daryl staring at her.

'What?' She asked, annoyed. Daryl frowned.

'Just checking you're okay' he said, looking at his hands. Thalia rolled her eyes, and got up from the floor, she stretched and went outside. She lit a cigarette and walked off. God, Daryl was doing her head in, staring at her all the time. She was fine, yeah she was upset about Sophia, but she was going to find her today. She kept walking, passing abandoned cars as she went.

'Thalia!' Daryl called, jogging to catch up with her. She turned to look at him, cocking a hip.

'What?' She burst out. Daryl stopped dead. 'Look Daryl, I understand you're worried about me, but please just leave me alone. Ok? I need some time to work things out alright? I'm so fucking stressed at the moment, it's unreal. You're not helping by crowding me all the time. I'm ready to go look for Sophia when you are ok? Just give me some time to sort my head out, please?' Daryl took her hand and pulled her close.

'S'alright, Thalia. I get it. Don't worry, you just take all the time you need. I'll be right here waiting, ok? But don't have a go at me when I'm just checking up on you, alright? I'm just making sure you don't need me. I don't want you to feel alone' he said, looking right at her. Thalia sighed, she leaned forward and kissed him, hard. He held onto her as if he feared she'd disappear. Thalia pressed her lips to his gently, one last time before pulling away.

'See you in 5?' She asked, and Daryl nodded. He kissed her forehead, and walked off.

Thalia continued to pace, back and forth, back and forth. She heard the others talking, making plans for the search. Eventually she heard someone coming to get her, she presumed it was Daryl. But when she turned round to talk to him, she found it was Shane. He looked pretty damn mad.

'What you doing up here girl?' He asked, hands on his hips. Thalia raised her eyebrows.

'Nothin', not that it's any of your business' she retorted, cocking her hip, and crossing her arms. Shane looked at her like she was stupid.

'Course it's my business, you're part of the group, I need to know where you are at all times' he said. Thalia rolled her eyes.

'No, you don't. I can look out for myself. I got Daryl, too. I don't need you pretending like you care, when all you're doing is trying to distract yourself from Rick and Lori' she snapped.

'What the fuck? You shut your mouth, bitch! You need to keep your nose outta people's business' he said, poking her in the chest.

'Don't you fucking touch me' Thalia spat, pushing away his hand. 'You have no Goddamn right to touch me.' Shane laughed.

'I can do whatever I want, bitch. You might have the others convinced you're a nice girl, but you ain't fooling me. We all know you're screwing Daryl, and well, I figured you were a whore, but Daryl? Phew' he whistled. Thalia balled her hands into fists and gritted her teeth. 'I mean, I could see you were a slut, but I couldn't understand it. But then I realised, it was the bambi eyed thing you were playing.' SMACK.

Thalia punched Shane as hard she could. She heard a sickening crunch, and smiled satisfied, knowing she'd broken his nose. She turned to walk away, when he grabbed her arm, and pushed her over. She fell, smacking her head on the ground. But that didn't stop her, she launched herself at Shane, punching and kicking, scratching and slapping. She'd been in fights against men before, she knew what to do. But Shane had made her mad. She felt herself being lifted off him and pulled away. She twisted, trying to pull herself out of the iron grip of whoever was holding her. 'Shh, calm down' Rick told her. She stopped struggling. The scene in front of her cleared, and she saw Glenn and T-Dog pulling Daryl off of Shane, he was bleeding from pretty much everywhere. Daryl's knuckles had split open. It look like he'd broken Shane's cheekbone. Rick let go of her, and she went to Daryl. She took his hands in hers, and examined them.

'What the fuck, Shane?' Rick yelled. 'Why on earth were you hitting Thalia?'

'I didn't, crazy bitch threw herself at me' Shane said, spitting blood out. Thalia turned and tried to launch herself at him again, but Dale caught her.

'Calm down sweetheart. We know what happened' he said. Thalia looked at him. 'We'd better get your face sorted out, come with me. T-Dog, Glenn bring Daryl as well.' Thalia followed Dale back to the RV. He sat her down, and brought a wash cloth and a bowl of water. He washed her face gently, taking care with the cuts, and her split lip. Daryl refused to let Lori take a look at his hands, he came and sat next to her.

'I'ma kill that bastard for touching you' he spat. She placed a hand on his arm.

'Thanks' she said. He looked at her.

'What else was I 'sposed to do? I mean you were getting him pretty good, but I was tryin' to kill him' he said.

'Rick will deal with him Daryl' Dale said. Daryl glared at him. 'He will, he's not so blind to Shane's actions when it comes to him hitting Thalia.' Rick stomped into the RV.

'Thalia, look, we need to sort this out before we go look for Sophia' he said.

'I'm going nowhere with that asshole. You gonna let him get away with hurting me? Wow. I never thought you'd let that happen' she said. Daryl stood up and got in Rick's face.

'What are you doing about him? If you don't do something, I will. I'll fucking kill that asshole' he threatened. Rick looked worried.

'Look Daryl, I need all the help I can get looking for Sophia' he said. Thalia shook her head.

'I love Sophia, she's family. But I'm going nowhere with that asshole. I'll kill him if he comes near me again' she promised. Rick nodded.

'I'm not asking you. But Daryl, we need you. You're our only tracker. Leave Thalia with Dale and T-Dog. She'll be safe here. You can keep an eye on Shane at the same time' Rick pleaded. Daryl looked at Thalia, she nodded.

'One of us has to look for Sophia. We're her bodyguards remember?' She said.

'Yep. I'ma keep my eye on that motherfucker, and come right on back with Sophia, okay?' Thalia smiled, even though it hurt. Daryl kissed her cheek, and walked out with Rick. Thalia reached for her cigarettes and offered one to T-Dog. T-Dog grinned. Lori and Carol came to say goodbye.

'I wanted to leave Carl here with you. But I got overruled. Besides, he does need to learn to defend himself. I want you to know, that what Shane did, well that sort of thing doesn't fly with me. We all want him gone. As soon as we find Sophia' Lori said, Carol nodding behind her.

'It's okay, Sophia is our top priority, you go bring her back here, so I can teach her how to fight' Thalia said. Carol smiled, hugged her and went off to join the others. Lori touched her cheek and walked out too.

'Well, I never knew you could fight' T-Dog said, blowing out smoke. Thalia grinned.

'Hell yeah, I had 5 brothers at home, they all taught me how to fight. What I wouldn't give for them to be here. Shane'd be dead before he could open that dumb mouth of his' she smirked. T-Dog chuckled.

Thalia thought about Daryl, and smiled. He really did love her.


	6. Chapter 6

**Ok so I'm the most terrible person in the world! I'm really sorry, what with christmas and applying for uni and writers block its been so long since I've written. I'm terrible. Please enjoy this chapter, and hopefully I will get another one out to you soon. **

Thalia turned from her watch position at the sound of running. She saw the others running back up, but Rick wasn't there, or Carl. Or even Lori. Shane was gone too. Good. She climbed down, and Daryl took her hand, he examined her face, checking her lip and the rest of her face. He nodded and kissed her gently. She smiled.

'Where's Carl? Rick and Lori?' She asked.

'Some girl on a horse took her. She knew Rick and Carl's names, said Carl had been shot, and that Lori was needed. She gave us directions to the house' Glenn said. Thalia looked at Daryl, he shrugged.

'Well we'd better go to the farm then, is it far?' She asked. Glenn shook his head.

'We're not going anywhere without Sophia' Carol burst out. Thalia shook her head.

'Of course not. We'll stay here until we find her. But what about Carl?' Thalia looked at her hands, Daryl had hold of one but the other was swollen.

'Someone needs to go find out if they're ok' Glenn said. Thalia nodded.

'Well T-Dog needs medical assistance look at his arm' she said.

'I'll take him' Glenn offered.

'You should go too' Daryl said looking at Thalia. She shook her head hard. 'You need someone to check on your face, and Lori will need you. I'll stay here for Sophia you go for Carl and Lori. We'll come down in the morning' he said, caressing her cheek. Thalia nodded and kissed him hard. Grabbing her backpack she followed Glenn and T-Dog to one of the cars. They took off following Glenns directions.

When they reached the farm Thalia jumped out and opened the gate that was blocking the way, Glenn zoomed through and she slammed it shut. She ran after them as Glenn skidded to a stop. He jumped out of the car and followed Thalia up to the porch. A woman with short brown hair came out.

'You close the gate?' She asked.

'We did' Glenn said.

'What happened to your arm?' She asked T-Dog.

'Oh it's not a bite don't worry. I caught it on a metal edge' he said. She nodded and motioned for them to follow her. Thalia was first inside and found Rick and Lori. She gave Lori a big hug, and then did the same for Rick. She turned and knelt on the floor and took Carl's hand.

'What does he need?' She asked.

'Blood' an old guy with longish white hair and a beard said.

'What blood type is he?'

'A positive, Rick has already given some.'

'Well I'm O negative' Thalia said sighing.

'Thats fine it's a universal blood type.' Thalia smiled.

'All right doc, do what you gotta' she said.

'I'll take a pint, and then you need to go get checked out, you look like you been in a fight.'

'Oh I was' Thalia shrugged.

Thalia was being patched up in the kitchen by a woman named patricia. She had really pretty hair.

'What happened to you?' Patricia asked. Thalia shrugged.

'I got into a fight.'

'Who with? A man?'

'Yeah, Shane' Patricia looked at her startled.

'Shane?' Thalia nodded. 'But he's gone with Otis to get the medical supplies to operate on Carl.'

'Carl needs an operation?' Thalia exclaimed. She tried to get up but T-Dog pushed her back down.

'Calm down girl, if you don't get fixed up, Daryl's gonna be seriously mad when he gets here' he said. Thalia smiled. Daryl would be here soon. It was the middle of the night now.

'Right you're all done. You look dead on your feet, go get some sleep' Patricia.

'C'mon lets go find you a couch' T-Dog said, pulling Thalia to her feet. T-Dog led her to a couch where she immediately passed out.

When Thalia woke the next morning Daryl was sitting on the floor watching her. She smiled.

'Hey' she said sleepily, stretching.

'Good morning, you sleep ok?' Daryl asked, taking Thalia's hand. Her fingers automatically closed around the arrowhead he had made for her.

'Yeah, not too bad, is Carl ok? Did you find Sophia?' She asked. Daryl looked down.

'Carl's fine, they operated on him. But we couldn't find Sophia. I'm gonna go look for her today.' Thalia closed her eyes. Poor Sophia, I was supposed to look after her. What if they never found her? She thought. 'I can see you worrying. Stop it. I'm gonna find her today.' Thalia smiled, and leaned forward to place her lips on his. She stood up and pulled him with her. She was looking for Carl. She found Lori with him. She smiled at her, and pulled her into a hug.

'Thank you, for donating the blood. Rick couldn't have given all of his' Lori said.

'It was my pleasure. How's he doing, sleeping it off?' Thalia asked.

'Yeah, sleeps good for him at this point though.' Thalia nodded and left Lori with Carl. Daryl pulled her outside onto the porch. He held her to him, holding on tightly.

'I missed you last night. I couldn't sleep' he said. Thalia smiled and looked up at him.

'I didn't get to sleep until the middle of the night.' They watched as Glenn went past riding a horse. 'Glenn? What on earth?' she called.

'I'm going into the town to get supplies, need anything?' he asked.

'Nah, I'm good, but be careful ok?' Thalia said. Glenn nodded. Daryl took Thalia to where there tent was set up.

'My clothes!' She cried. 'You brought them for me?' Daryl nodded. She immediately took off her old clothes and put on fresh new ones. She was wearing her favourite pair of shorts, and a thin white t-shirt. She laid down in the tent and pulled Daryl down with her. Laying her head on his chest she said 'lets not do that again.'

'What spend a night away from each other?'

'Yeah, I didn't like that' Thalia sighed contentedly. Daryl held her tighter to him. He didn't have the words to tell how just how much he'd missed her. Thalia fell asleep laying on his chest.

When Thalia woke up it was mid afternoon and Daryl was gone. She climbed out of the tent and found Glenn sitting by the campfire. Not that there was a fire. She sat next to him.

'You okay Glenn? You look kinda upset' she said. Glenn shook his head.

'I'm fine.' He looked kinda sick.

'What happened? Come on spill, tell me' Thalia coaxed.

'I.. I uh, slept with Maggie' he blurted. Thalia looked at him.

'Really? So are you a thing now?' She asked. Glenn shook his head. 'What? Ok, so it was just sex. But you want more?' Glenn nodded. Thalia stood up. She stormed over to the house. She was gonna find that Maggie and give her a piece of her mind. Glenn was calling her but she ignored him. She ripped open the door, and called for Maggie. She heard footsteps on the stairs and she walked towards them.

'Hey Thalia, you ok?' Maggie asked.

'Nope' she shook her head. 'What the fuck do you think you're doing sleeping with Glenn and then brushing him off like a piece of meat?' She said, trembling. Thalia hadn't even realised how mad she was. Glenn was this quiet kid, he had little to no experience with girls, and she didn't want him to get hurt. Maggie looked at her in shock.

'What has it got to do with you?' She asked frowning.

'He's my best friend. He's like a brother. You don't know him like I do. He's sweet and naive and hasn't got a clue about girls. He doesn't deserve to be treated like this. Either tell him it was a one time thing and let him move on or stay away from him completely.'

**Ok so if you could let me know how you feel about this chapter, that would be super. Reviewing really helps :)**


End file.
